Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Indian Summer is here! It was 82 degrees today and sunny. It felt like June all over again except the leaves were all on the ground instead of on the trees. I will sure miss the warm weather.
Went to Keeneland Race Track today for a seminar then free admission to the races. Didn't do very well picking the winners but it was a great day anyway.
Yesterday we had another training session for Traveler. He did very well with his transitions this time. Also had 2 lessons. I acquired a cute little concrete bench with a carving of horses on it.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Once again, you can't trust the weatherman. They said sunny and beautiful all week, it was cloudy and actually had a downpour. Or maybe I just have a dark cloud following me because I went to pick up my convertible from the repair shop and just as I left, rain came down in buckets. Oh well, got a free car wash, inside and out!
The skies finally cleared in the afternoon and it did turn out to be a nice Indian summer kind of day. There were 2 sets of lessons for the day. One was a little boy who has not been in awhile. He is such a character! He had come to the summer horse camp back in July and remembered everything. The first thing he did when he got on the horse was stand straight up on her back! Oh to be a kid again with no fear of danger.
Last night I talked to my hay man about the last delivery they made. I was supposed to get alfalfa but ended up with orchard grass. He is crediting my account $1/bale (200). The horses will eat it but you can tell they don't like it as well. They keep switching from flake to flake trying to find the "good stuff". The hay man did just get a 6th cutting which will be extremely high in protein. That will be good come December when I will need another load.

Sunday, October 21, 2012

It's been a busy weekend!
Friday... I was alerted that Bandit wasn't doing well. The vet told the new owner that he should be put down! I went to see him and he was actually doing better than he had been in a long while. I think witnessing his discomfort with navicular disease for the first time just scared her. He will be fine as long as he gets his shoes this week.
Saturday... had several customers. It was a cold, cloudy, windy day but that's alright. We saw the fox again in the trail. I will get a picture of it soon I hope.
Today was a great day! The weather was nice, 72 sunny. Couldn't have been more beautiful day, with the big blue sky and horseback riding all day! After my morning customer, we went to Masterson Station Park to work with Traveler on cross country jumping. Kim is doing a great job with him.
One of the other riders that went fell off Cherokee but was a real cowgirl and got right back on.
I had a very enjoyable ride on Cisco.

Came back to the farm and had another group of customers for a trail ride. It was just a wonderful day!

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

What a great day! Had trainer come for Traveler. He is such a character, always into something and wants to work! She tried jumping with him for the first time and he absolutely loved it! We are planning a day out at Masterson Station soon so he can really show off.

Kim did another lesson after the training and the student was very responsive and wants to learn english riding so bad. She is very excited and wants to know everything right now!
My lesson with another student went very well also. She rode one of the harder horses today and did fantastic with him.
Like I said, it was a great day!

Monday, October 15, 2012

Was only able to get one customer in yesterday because of the wind. Had a great ride at 10:00 am with a regular customer. Got to see the most beautiful fox in the trail! It was very red and bushy with great markings on its face. Saw it 2 different times on that ride. I wish I could have gotten a picture.
Strong storms were predicted for the afternoon. We had high winds but barely got any rain by the time the front came through. This still was enough to deter any riding for the day. The horses get a little high strung when it's windy like that.
Had a lesson this evening with a great little gal that always cracks me up. She wants to teach the horses Spanish and build a classroom for them in the trail. Then there will be a playground. They have to go to school everyday, except if they don't want to, but they have to go on Saturdays! She is a hoot! She also likes to make up songs for the horses which are always entertaining.
Days are getting shorter and nights are getting colder. Won't be long until the time changes :(

Saturday, October 13, 2012

It was another great day at Easy Riders Ranch! Weather was a splendid 72 degrees, a bit windy at times but that was just fine. Clouds moved in this evening but no rain as of yet.
Fed horses, mowed grass, had several groups of customers - one lady from Australia! Everyone did good, ended up riding 6 horses today even though I had small groups. They needed to get out and get some exercise. Cisco was awesome as usual (can't tell he's becoming my favorite can you?)
I am starting to get sad because the leaves are falling off the trees :( I am not a big fan of the winter, I like the green grass and leaves giving shade on the trees. All the horses have a thick coat already - might mean it is going to be a cold winter.

Friday, October 12, 2012

It was another beautiful day today, weather was perfect for horseback riding. I ask why then did I only have one customer? It's been Fall break from schools, weather was great, horses are ready to ride, I don't know. I guess since it was a weekday and people are at work and the sun goes down earlier and earlier everyday. Tomorrow should be even nicer so hopefully we will get more calls.
Went to pick up a horse with a friend tonight. It was a young gelding Arabian, very pretty. He was upset to be in the horse trailer though, sweating profusely and wouldn't hold still. I hope he works out for them.
Rode Comanche today, it's been awhile since I rode him. He did good and enjoyed getting out for a ride I think.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

It's been an interesting day. The vet came out and drew blood for Coggins, gave 4 cats their shots (a bunch of screaming and clawing going on there), 1 dog got shots (Pity). Cost was about $125 more than expected because of farm call, office visit for each animal ($35 for 1st, $15 for next animals) but it's done and that's all that matters really. Had a few customers, a couple were from Japan. They enjoyed their ride but it was a little different with translation taking place.
Reds lost their game, so now there is a game 5 for the National League Division Series. I decided I need to go to the game to ensure their win tomorrow. Went online, got tickets, closed for tomorrow. (This is only horse related because I closed to go to the game.)
Went to hay tonight about 9:30, dogs always go with me. Two dogs didn't come back right away, no problem though this happens. Next thing I know, I'm at the computer and smell SKUNK! Oh no! That means the 2 dogs that were still out got it! Peeuweee!
Oh well, Go REDS!

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

It was 32 with frost this morning but warmed up nicely by the afternoon. I saw 66 on the thermometer. Got a little grass cut, had Kim the trainer out to work with Traveler, and had 2 lessons. It was a very productive day :)
Traveler wasn't on his game today. He just didn't want to work today, didn't do anything bad, just not listening well today. Kim also did the lesson for one of the students that wants to learn english riding and jumping. They both did good for the first lesson!

I got to ride Cisco today! He's a great ride, I am so glad I got him (by accident)! Love this guy!

Monday, October 8, 2012

Boy was it cold this morning! I had to break out the long johns! It finally warmed up this afternoon to about 60 degrees then quickly dropped the temperature as the sun went down. Had 4 groups today, it was very busy. The horses did great as usual.
Poor Luna got beat up pretty bad overnight so after doctoring up her wounds, I moved her to the backyard to get some peace. She looks like she was trapped in a stall or something, just superficial cuts and marks, but they look terrible on a white horse.

Sunday, October 7, 2012

It was really cold out today. This morning it was 41 degrees when I went to hay - Brr! I had a customer at 10 am and my toes were froze by the time the ride was over. The cold air just takes all my energy away from me. I came in, ate lunch and fell asleep on the couch. The horses are enjoying the cool weather. Geronimae was pretty frisky today. Tonight is supposed to be even colder, so I'd better bundle up for tomorrow's appointments.
We did go watch the parade last night. It was a little disappointing because there were not very many people/horses that participated. I guess I will have to go ride my horses in it next year.

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Welcome to my blog. I will use this site to discuss daily life around the farm. I am new to blogging so bare with me here. First let me introduce myself and my family. My name is Vickie Palmer, I am 44 years old, I live on a 10 acre farm with Donna Barnhill and 10 horses, 5 cats, and 3 dogs. I am living my dream! I own and operate a trail riding business in Georgetown, KY called Easy Riders Ranch, LLC. I get to get up everyday and go outside to play with horses. I have been in business for 12 years, the last 5 1/2 here in Georgetown.

October 6, 2012: My head hurts as I almost knocked myself out yesterday trying to disconnect the horse trailer from the truck. I busted my head on the hitch, ouch! I tend to get myself hurt about once every 3 months or so. I have to wear a hat when I fish so I don't hook myself in the head!

The weather has taken a turn for the cold. It's about 50 degrees but sunny. It's supposed to be in the upper 20's for the overnight low Sunday night. Brr! Time to get the water heaters out I suppose. I hate the cold, dreary wintertime. It depresses me. I love the green grass, leaves on the trees, beautiful flowers of spring.
The horses, on the other hand, love the cooler weather. They are more frisky this time of year.

Got the barn filled with hay yesterday - 200 bales of alfalfa. This should last until December, hopefully. A bale of hay costs $6 and weighs about 70 lbs. I feed 3 bales per day; morning, afternoon, and evening. I have had to feed hay all year because of the drought this summer. There is no pasture :(

Went the the Scott County Reservoir yesterday with Kim the trainer. We took the new horse, Traveler, for his first trail ride. He did great overall, just had a little bit of issue with crossing creeks at first. By the time we left he was going right through the creek with no problem. Kim does a great job with him - they seem to click with each other. I am not getting attached to Traveler because I know he has to be sold in the near future.

Today should be fun, the Festival of the Horse is going on in downtown Georgetown this weekend. The parade is tonight. I say every year that I am going to ride in the parade but never do. It just doesn't work out for me. We will go down to watch it though. Hopefully, my head will feel better by then so I can stand the crowds/noise.